Learning and Living with a Reactive Dog

Menu

Loyal Lunatics

Today on the news I heard about a loyal labrador named Grace who stayed by its companion’s side after the other dog was hit by a car. The dog stood in the middle of the multi-lane road even though cars swerved and drove past. As Grace stood by her now dead companion, a good samaritan put cones up to block traffic. Eventually, animal control came and they are looking for the owner of Grace and the other dog, otherwise she will need to be adopted. I found the article here http://www.sgvtribune.com/news/ci_20400328/loyal-labrador-stays-by-companions-side-after-la

This is a heart warming and heart breaking story, to think Grace’s best friend was hit and she wanted to stand by and not leave him. This is not uncommon. Dogs are very loyal to their companions, whether human or canine. If you search on youtube for dogs stay by companion or any other search terms similar, you will find endless videos and reports on dogs not leaving their owner or companions side when they are injured.

One of the most heart-breaking and famous stories is of a dog named Hawkeye who refused to leave a fallen Navy Seals side. He was killed in a helicopter crash and at the funeral Hawkeye walked up to the casket and with a heaving sigh laid down next to his cakset. The picture at the top of this entry shows the picture taken by the Navy Seal’s cousin. We can’t always speak the same language as our dogs, but they understand much more than people give them credit for, and their bonds with us go much deeper than we think.

Another dog, Sadie, stayed for 3 days near her owner when he got thrown from a boat and into a tree. The dog actually removed tree branches from on top of him, and licked his face, trying to revive him. Other dogs have stayed by their owner’s graves for days, or a dead soldier’s side. Dogs give unconditional love, protection, and emotional support. Yes, sometimes it’s not the greatest time when you have to take your dog to the vet, or when you are walking your dog in sleet or rain, but it is worth it. Many times we do not recognize how amazing dogs are until dogs like Sadie and Grace show us. For those people who think dogs don’t have feeling or bonds with people are loyal lunatics. They are loyal meaning they don’t change their mind about animals or dogs even when the facts are in front of them. Dogs do have feelings, they are loyal, and do as much for us as we do for them.